Dhananjaya Maduranga de Silva

International career

Dhananjaya Maduranga de Silva was born on 26 December 1997. He is an Indian cricketer who plays as a left-arm spinner. He has played for Madhya Pradesh in domestic matches and later joined Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Kartikeya is known for his disciplined bowling and his ability to control the game. Many players and teams have noticed his progress across different formats. Step by step, he has built his place in cricket through his efforts and strong performances.

2015

• Selected for Sri Lanka’s T20I squad against Pakistan.
• Made T20I debut on 30 July 2015 in Colombo.
• Scored 31 runs in his first match.

2016

• Played first ODI against Ireland on 16 June 2016 in Dublin.
• Received Sri Lanka’s 169th ODI cap.
• Made Test debut on 26 July 2016 against Australia at Pallekele.
• Started Test career with a six, a rare milestone.
• Took first Test wicket by dismissing Peter Nevill.
• Scored first Test century in the third Test against Australia.
• Finished as the top run scorer in the series with 325 runs at an average of 65.00.
• Opened the batting after Tillakaratne Dilshan’s retirement and scored 76 runs, the highest by a Sri Lankan in a debut opening innings.

2017

• Scored a fifty and a century in the Test series against Zimbabwe.
• Removed from all teams after poor results in South Africa.
• Returned to the Champions Trophy squad after Kusal Perera’s injury but failed to make an impact.
• Played the third Test against India and scored his third Test century.
• Walked off the field with a thigh injury during the match.
• Recorded the highest fourth-innings score (119) by a visiting batsman in India.

2018

• Scored fourth Test century against Bangladesh in Chittagong.
• Formed a 308-run partnership with Kusal Mendis.
• Scored 173 runs, his career-best score at that time.
• Reached 1,000 Test runs in his 23rd innings, becoming joint-fastest Sri Lankan to do so.
• Received a national contract for the 2018–19 season.
• Returned to T20I cricket against South Africa and helped win the match.
• Named man of the match for his all-round effort.

2019

• Selected for the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup.
• Took three wickets in nine balls against England in a key match.
• Scored his sixth Test century against Pakistan in December.

2020

• Injured his wrist during the third ODI against the West Indies in March.
• Missed the T20I series against the West Indies due to injury.
• Scored 79 runs in the Boxing Day Test against South Africa.
• Left the field due to a muscle tear and missed the rest of the series.

2021

• Scored his seventh Test century against Bangladesh in Kandy.
• Formed a record partnership with Dimuth Karunaratne.
• Named in Sri Lanka’s squad for the 2021 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.

2022

• Joined Sri Lanka A squad for matches against Australia A.
• Missed the second Test against Australia after contracting COVID-19.
• Scored a half-century against Afghanistan on 1 November 2022.
  
  

2023

• Scored 98 runs against New Zealand in Wellington on 20 March 2023.
• Missed his tenth Test century by two runs.

2024

• Appointed as Sri Lanka’s Test captain in February.
• Led Sri Lanka to a Test win against Afghanistan.
• Scored twin centuries against Bangladesh in March.
• Formed century partnerships in both innings with Kamindu Mendis.
• Became part of a rare event where two teammates scored centuries in both innings of the same match.
• Helped Sri Lanka win by 328 runs and received man of the match award.
• Named in Sri Lanka’s squad for the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
• Played a T20I match against the Netherlands on 16 June 2024 and scored 34 runs off 26 balls.

2025

• Played his last recorded Test match on 6 February 2025 against Australia in Galle.
• Dismissed for zero runs in that match.

Leagues Participation

Dhananjaya de Silva has played in the International League T20 (ILT20), adding more international league matches to his career. His time in the ILT20 helped him stay active in T20 cricket and compete against strong overseas players.

Lanka Premier League

Dhananjaya de Silva has been part of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) in several seasons, playing for different teams. His performances in the league often helped his teams win key matches, and he stayed active in the local T20 scene through these participations.

Year	Team	Notes
2020	Jaffna Stallions	Drafted in October 2020 for the inaugural LPL season.
2021	Colombo Stars	Played the season and was named player of the match on December 6, 2021, against Galle Gladiators.
2022	Jaffna Kings	Signed in July 2022 for the third edition of the LPL.
2023	Dambulla Sixers	Played for Dambulla Sixers (Dambulla Aura). Helped secure a win over Galle Marvels on August 11, 2023.
2024	Jaffna Stallions	Participated in the season.

ILT20

Dhananjaya de Silva did not participate in the ILT20. Instead, in August 2021, he was appointed as the captain of the SLC Blues team for the 2021 SLC Invitational T20 League tournament held in Sri Lanka.

Year	Team	Notes
2021	—	Did not play in ILT20. Captained SLC Blues in the SLC Invitational T20 League.

Domestic career

Dhananjaya de Silva began his domestic cricket journey after playing senior school cricket at Richmond College, Galle, where he also captained the first XI team in the 2010/2011 season. He made his First-Class debut in May 2011 and has played domestic cricket actively across formats since then. Over the years, he represented teams like Colombo, Galle, and Badureliya in domestic tournaments.

In March 2018, he was named vice-captain of the Colombo squad in the Super Four Provincial Tournament and later took part in the Super Provincial One Day Tournament. In August of the same year, he joined Galle’s squad for the SLC T20 League. His consistent performances continued, and in 2019, he was named player of the tournament in the Super Provincial One Day Tournament. He later joined several Lanka Premier League teams and captained the SLC Blues in the 2021 SLC Invitational T20 League. Throughout his domestic career, Dhananjaya de Silva has been a steady performer and an important player for his local teams.

Records and achievements

Dhananjaya de Silva has built a strong cricketing career with several records and awards across domestic and international levels. His consistent performances with both bat and ball have brought him recognition over the years.

• 2017: Named Test Batsman of the Year for the 2016-17 season at the Sri Lanka Cricket annual awards.
• 2019: Awarded Player of the Tournament at the Super Provincial One Day Tournament.
• 2024: As Sri Lanka's Test captain, led the team to victory against Afghanistan in a one-off Test match.
• 2024: Scored twin centuries against Bangladesh as captain, with a 202-run partnership with Kamindu Mendis in the first innings and another century partnership in the second innings.
• Test Career (2016 - 2025): Played 63 Test matches, scored 4,095 runs at an average of 39, including 495 fours and 35 sixes.
• ODI Career (2016 - 2023): Played 90 ODI matches, scored 1,865 runs at an average of 26, with 186 fours and 17 sixes.
• T20I Career (2015 - 2024): Appeared in 45 T20I matches, scored 847 runs at an average of 21, hitting 71 fours and 18 sixes.
• 2024: Reached 20th position in the ICC Test batting rankings with 653 points.
• 2023: Missed his 10th Test century by just 2 runs against New Zealand, finishing on 98 runs.
• 2016: Became the first Sri Lankan player to score a six as his first scoring shot in Test cricket.
• 2016: Highest run-scorer in Sri Lanka’s Test series against Australia with 325 runs at an average of 65.00.
• 2017: Recorded the highest fourth-innings score by a visiting batsman in India with an unbeaten 119 runs in Delhi.
• 2018: Became one of the joint-fastest Sri Lankan batsmen to reach 1,000 Test runs in just 23 innings.
• 2019: Took 3 wickets in 9 balls against England at the Cricket World Cup, leading Sri Lanka to victory.
• 2018: Won the Man of the Match award in a T20I against South Africa after an all-round performance.

Personal life

Dhananjaya de Silva is known as a Sri Lankan cricketer with a strong family background and many personal moments. His life story includes family events, financial success, and public attention.

Family

Dhananjaya de Silva was born on 6 September 1991 in Hambantota, Sri Lanka. He is the second son in a family with three brothers. His first school was Deberawewa National School in Tissamaharama. Later, he moved to Richmond College in Galle, where he played senior school cricket and captained the first XI cricket team in the 2010/2011 season.

His father, Ranjan de Silva, was a politician. On 25 May 2018, his father was killed by an unknown gunman near their house in Ratmalana. After this tragedy, de Silva left the Sri Lankan squad for the West Indies tour. He returned to the team for the second match of the tour.

Dhananjaya de Silva is married. He has two children.

Finances

His estimated wealth is between 1 and 3 million US dollars. His income comes from cricket contracts, sponsorships, and other agreements.

Scandals

Like many public figures, Dhananjaya de Silva has faced some controversies and difficult moments in his career and personal life. These events attracted media attention and sparked discussions among fans and the cricket community.

• Father’s Death (2018): The murder of his father was reported in local and international news in 2018.
• Match Refusal Rumor (2023): In March 2023, some reports said that de Silva refused to play at a certain stadium in a match against New Zealand. He later wrote on Twitter that this information was false. He said that he always stands with his team.
• Warm-up Match Problem (2024): In August 2024, de Silva said that the Cricket Board of England and Wales (ECB) did not schedule enough warm-up matches before the cricket series in England. He spoke openly about this issue.

Fans

Dhananjaya de Silva has many fans. His Instagram account has about 184,000 followers. Fans watch his updates about cricket and his personal life.